U.S. patent application number 15/332617 was filed with the patent office on 2018-04-26 for smart elevator movement.
This patent application is currently assigned to ECHOSTAR TECHNOLOGIES L.L.C.. The applicant listed for this patent is ECHOSTAR TECHNOLOGIES L.L.C.. Invention is credited to Bhavesh Patel.
Application Number | 20180111787 15/332617 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 61971768 |
Filed Date | 2018-04-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180111787 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Patel; Bhavesh |
April 26, 2018 |
SMART ELEVATOR MOVEMENT
Abstract
One or more elevators can be more efficiently controlled by
considering the then-current spatial capacity of the elevator.
Camera images or other sensor data indicative of the occupied space
in the elevator are received and processed by a control device to
determine whether or not the elevator should stop at a requested
floor. If the elevator is determined to lack space for additional
passengers, then the elevator can bypass the requested stop and
proceed without delay. If space remains, however, the elevator can
stop to accommodate additional passengers. Measured spatial
capacity can also be used to coordinate the actions of multiple
elevators operating within a building.
Inventors: |
Patel; Bhavesh; (Woodstock,
GA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
ECHOSTAR TECHNOLOGIES L.L.C. |
Englewood |
CO |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
ECHOSTAR TECHNOLOGIES
L.L.C.
Englewood
CO
|
Family ID: |
61971768 |
Appl. No.: |
15/332617 |
Filed: |
October 24, 2016 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B66B 2201/215 20130101;
B66B 1/3476 20130101; B66B 1/2458 20130101; B66B 2201/222
20130101 |
International
Class: |
B66B 1/24 20060101
B66B001/24; B66B 1/46 20060101 B66B001/46 |
Claims
1. A process executable by a controller device that controls an
elevator, the process comprising: receiving a request at the
controller device to stop the elevator at a requested floor;
receiving, by the controller device, sensor data from a sensor that
is associated with elevator; processing the sensor data by the
controller device to determine a current spatial occupancy of the
elevator; and directing the elevator to bypass the requested floor
if the current spatial occupancy exceeds a threshold amount, and
otherwise directing the elevator to stop at the requested
floor.
2. The process of claim 1 wherein the sensor is a camera, wherein
the sensor data comprises a digital image of the elevator, and
wherein the processing of the sensor data comprises processing the
digital image of the elevator to determine the current spatial
occupancy as an amount of elevator area that is occupied.
3. The process of claim 2 wherein the processing of the digital
image of the elevator comprises counting a number of pixel values
that differ from a predetermined value.
4. The process of claim 3 wherein the processing of the digital
image of the elevator comprises determining if a sum of the pixel
values varies from a predetermined value.
5. The process of claim 3 wherein the processing of the digital
image of the elevator comprises determining if an average of the
pixel values varies from a predetermined value.
6. The process of claim 1 wherein the directing comprises the
controller device generating control signals to thereby control the
movement of the elevator.
7. The process of claim 1 further comprising: receiving additional
data by the controller device from a second sensor located outside
of the elevator on the requested floor; processing the additional
data by the controller device to determine a spatial demand for the
elevator; and directing the elevator to bypass the requested floor
if the current spatial occupancy indicates that space remaining in
the elevator is less than the spatial demand for the elevator, and
otherwise directing the elevator to stop at the requested
floor.
8. The process of claim 1 further comprising directing the actions
of another elevator based the spatial occupancy of the
elevator.
9. The process of claim 1 wherein the elevator is directed to
bypass the requested floor to prevent delays in arriving at a
destination floor.
10. The process of claim 1 wherein the elevator is directed to
bypass the requested floor to allow passengers of the elevator to
arrive at a destination floor in time to reach another elevator
that is departing from the destination floor.
11. The process of claim 1 wherein the elevator is directed to
bypass the requested floor to allow passengers of the elevator to
arrive at a destination floor in time to reach another elevator
that is departing from the destination floor if the spatial
occupancy of the elevator is less than a current spatial capacity
of the other elevator.
12. The process of claim 1 further comprising: receiving other
sensor data from another sensor located in another elevator that is
departing from a destination floor: and processing the other sensor
data by the controller device to determine the current spatial
capacity of the other elevator; and wherein the directing comprises
directing the elevator to bypass the requested floor to allow
passengers of the elevator to arrive at the destination floor in
time to reach the other elevator if the current spatial occupancy
of the elevator is less than a current spatial capacity of the
other elevator.
13. The process of claim 12 wherein the sensor and the other sensor
are cameras, wherein the sensor data and the other sensor data
comprise digital images of the elevator and the other elevator,
respectively, and wherein the digital images are processed by the
controller device to determine the current spatial occupancy of the
elevator and the current spatial capacity of the other
elevator.
14. A controller device for an elevator, the controller device
comprising: a data interface configured to receive sensor data
associated with the elevator; a memory configured to store
instructions; and a controller configured to execute the
instructions stored by the memory, wherein the instructions, when
executed, cause the controller device to perform a process
comprising: receiving a request at the controller device to stop
the elevator at a requested floor; receiving, by the controller
device, the sensor data from a sensor that is associated with
elevator; processing the sensor data by the controller device to
determine a current spatial occupancy of the elevator; and
directing the elevator to bypass the requested floor if the current
spatial occupancy exceeds a threshold amount, and otherwise
directing the elevator to stop at the requested floor.
15. The controller device of claim 14 wherein the sensor is a
camera, wherein the sensor data comprises a digital image of the
elevator, and wherein the processing of the sensor data comprises
processing the digital image of the elevator to determine the
current spatial occupancy as an amount of elevator area that is
occupied.
16. The controller device of claim 14 wherein the processing of the
digital image of the elevator comprises counting a number of pixel
values that differ from a predetermined value.
17. The controller device of claim 14 wherein the process further
comprises: receiving additional data by the controller device from
a second sensor located outside of the elevator on the requested
floor; processing the additional data by the controller device to
determine a spatial demand for the elevator; and directing the
elevator to bypass the requested floor if the current spatial
occupancy indicates that space remaining in the elevator is less
than the spatial demand for the elevator, and otherwise directing
the elevator to stop at the requested floor.
18. The controller device of claim 14 wherein the elevator is
directed to bypass the requested floor to allow passengers of the
elevator to arrive at a destination floor in time to reach another
elevator that is departing from the destination floor if the
spatial occupancy of the elevator is less than a current spatial
capacity of the other elevator.
19. The controller device of claim 14 wherein the process
comprises: receiving other sensor data from another sensor located
in another elevator that is departing from a destination floor: and
processing the other sensor data by the controller device to
determine the current spatial capacity of the other elevator; and
wherein the directing comprises directing the elevator to bypass
the requested floor to allow passengers of the elevator to arrive
at the destination floor in time to reach the other elevator if the
current spatial occupancy of the elevator is less than a current
spatial capacity of the other elevator.
20. The controller device of claim 19 wherein the sensor and the
other sensor are cameras, wherein the sensor data and the other
sensor data comprise digital images of the elevator and the other
elevator, respectively, and wherein the digital images are
processed by the controller device to determine the current spatial
occupancy of the elevator and the current spatial capacity of the
other elevator.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The following discussion generally relates to control of
elevators used to move people in buildings. More particularly, the
following discussion relates to systems, devices and processes to
control elevator movement based upon detected elevator
occupancy.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Many multi-story buildings use elevators to transport people
and objects between floors of the building. People who work in tall
buildings, for example, often ride in elevators several times
during each workday as they arrive at work, attend meetings on
other floors, go to lunch, depart for the day and/or for many other
reasons.
[0003] Modern elevators are often scheduled and controlled by
computing machinery for efficient operation. Nevertheless, many
inefficiencies continue to occur. During a typical trip to or from
the upper floors of a tall building, for example, many (if not
most) elevator occupants will experience delays as the elevator
stops to pick up additional passengers. In many cases, the elevator
will stop for additional passengers even if the elevator is already
full, thereby unnecessarily wasting the current occupants'
time.
[0004] Although some attempts have been made to detect elevator
occupancy based upon weight, weight-based determinations can be
misleading. If several passengers are lighter than average (e.g., a
group of children), for example, the total weight of the elevator
would indicate that capacity remains even though no space is
available for additional passengers. Similarly, if a passenger has
a relatively large amount of baggage or other bulk, the weight of
the car will not provide an accurate estimation of the current
capacity that is available. As a result, the elevator will make
unnecessary stops for additional passengers even though there is no
space to accommodate those passengers. These unnecessary stops can
create aggravation amongst passengers on the elevator as they are
delayed. Moreover, the unnecessary stops are an inefficient use of
the elevator itself, thereby creating additional delays for all
others who are waiting for the elevator on other floors.
[0005] It is therefore desirable to create systems, devices and
processes for more efficient control of one or more elevators
operating within a building. These and other features and
characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed
description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings and this background section.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0006] One or more elevators can be more efficiently controlled by
considering the then-current spatial capacity of the elevator.
Camera images or other sensor data indicative of the occupied space
in the elevator are received and processed by a control device to
determine whether or not the elevator should stop at a requested
floor. If the elevator is determined to lack space for additional
passengers, then the control device directs the elevator to bypass
the requested stop and to proceed without delay. If space remains,
however, the elevator can be directed to stop so that additional
passengers are accommodated. Measured spatial capacity can also be
used to coordinate the actions of multiple elevators operating
within a building, or for any other purpose.
[0007] Various embodiments relate to a process executable by a
controller device that controls an elevator. The process suitably
comprises receiving a request at the controller device to stop the
elevator at a requested floor; receiving, by the controller device,
sensor data from a sensor that is associated with elevator;
processing the sensor data by the controller device to determine a
current spatial occupancy of the elevator; and directing the
elevator to bypass the requested floor if the current spatial
occupancy exceeds a threshold amount, and otherwise directing the
elevator to stop at the requested floor. The process may be
augmented in some implementations to consider data from additional
sensors located outside of the elevator to determine a spatial
demand for the elevator. The elevator suitably bypasses the
requested floor if the current spatial occupancy indicates that
space remaining in the elevator is less than the spatial demand for
the elevator.
[0008] Other embodiments provide a controller device for an
elevator, the controller device comprising: a data interface
configured to receive sensor data associated with the elevator; a
memory configured to store instructions; and a controller
configured to execute the instructions stored by the memory,
wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the controller
device to perform a process comprising: receiving a request at the
controller device to stop the elevator at a requested floor;
receiving, by the controller device, the sensor data from a sensor
that is associated with elevator; processing the sensor data by the
controller device to determine a current spatial occupancy of the
elevator; and directing the elevator to bypass the requested floor
if the current spatial occupancy exceeds a threshold amount, and
otherwise directing the elevator to stop at the requested
floor.
[0009] Other embodiments use determined spatial occupancy to
coordinate the actions of multiple elevators, to improve efficiency
in multi-elevator environments, and/or for any other purpose. These
examples and several others are described in increasing detail
below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
[0010] Example embodiments will hereinafter be described in
conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like
numerals denote like elements, and
[0011] FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example elevator system operating
within a building.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example controller for an
elevator system.
[0013] FIG. 3 illustrates an example technique for detecting
elevator occupancy using optical recognition.
[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates an example technique for detecting
elevator occupancy using grid sensors.
[0015] FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example technique for
controlling an elevator based upon capacity detection.
[0016] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example technique for
controlling an elevator based upon current capacity and requested
load detection.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] The following detailed description of the invention is
merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the
invention or the application and uses of the invention.
Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory
presented in the preceding background or the following detailed
description.
[0018] According to various embodiments, elevator operation is
improved through the use of spatial occupancy detection. By
detecting how much of the elevator space is actually occupied, it
can be readily deduced whether additional space is available for
additional passengers or objects. To that end, various embodiments
use optical, infrared and/or other sensors to measure the amount of
area that is available, and to schedule additional stops based upon
the available capacity. Further embodiments could also use optical
or other sensors in the elevator waiting areas to estimate the
requested elevator capacity. This estimate can then be compared to
the current excess spatial capacity of the elevator, which can in
turn be used to determine whether or not sufficient space is
available in the elevator to accommodate additional passengers.
Estimated space available and/or requested load space can be used
to coordinate actions of multiple elevators cars, as desired. These
concepts are described in greater detail below.
[0019] Turning now to the drawing figures and with initial
reference to FIG. 1, spatial detection of elevator occupancy is
performed by a control device 110 based upon data 131, 132 received
from one or more sensors 120, 122. In the example of FIG. 1, an
example elevator system 100 operating within a building 102
suitably includes a controller 110 that provides one or more
control signals 112A-C to direct the movement, stops and/or other
actions of one or more elevator cars 104A-C, respectively. Although
the example illustrated in FIG. 1 shows three elevators 104A-C
operating between eight floors, other embodiments could of course
use any number of elevators (including a single elevator) operating
between any number of different floors, including any number of
above or below ground floors. In some implementations, all of the
elevator cars 104 service the same floors of building 102; other
embodiments could be implemented using one or more elevators that
are limited to only subsets of floors. The example of FIG. 1, for
example, shows elevator car 104A serving all floors of the building
102, whereas elevator car 104B services only the lower floors and
elevator car 104C services only the upper floors. Passengers
travelling from the ground floor to the top floor, then, could take
elevator car 104A for a direct trip, or they could take elevator
car 104B to the fifth floor and then transfer to car 104C for the
remainder of the trip. Other embodiments could provide any number
of elevators (including a single elevator) serving any number of
floors according to any desired arrangement.
[0020] As discussed more fully below, each elevator car 104
contains one or more sensors 120 for detecting the amount of
occupied (or unoccupied) space in the elevator. Sensors 120 may be,
for example, cameras that are used to capture imagery of the
elevator floor, walls and/or ceiling so that persons or other
obstructing objects can be identified though image processing.
Sensors 120 may be equivalently implemented using a grid of
infrared, weight, pressure, temperature or other sensors that
collectively detect the occupied area of the elevator car. Other
techniques for measuring occupied space could be equivalently used,
as set forth in additional detail below. Data 131 from sensors 120
is provided to controller 110 via any wireless, wired or other data
transport mechanism for further processing.
[0021] Various embodiments could also include sensors 122 in the
lobbies, foyers or other waiting areas for detecting (or at least
estimating) the amount of space that is to be transported. Sensors
122 may also be cameras or other optical sensors, and/or any sort
of grid or other collection of infrared, weight, temperature or
other sensors. Data 132 collected from the various sensors 122 may
be processed locally by the sensors 132 and/or delivered to
controller no for further processing. Data 132 may be transmitted
wirelessly in some embodiments, and/or data 132 may be delivered
via a network, bus, cable or other physical transport as
appropriate.
[0022] Controller 110 is a hardware device that is programmed using
software, firmware and/or other programmable logic to control the
operation of elevator cars 104A-B. In various embodiments,
controller no is implemented within an embedded computer system,
although other embodiments could implement controller 110 with
conventional personal computers, servers or the like, as desired.
Controller 110 may physically reside in or on an elevator car 104
in some embodiments, although controller no may be equivalently
located elsewhere in building 102, such as in a data center or the
like. Other embodiments could use the Internet or another network
to deliver data 131, 132 and control signals 112 for offsite or
other remote processing, as desired. Although FIG. 1 shows a single
controller no that provides control signals 112A-C to multiple
elevator cars 104A-C, other embodiments may divide the
functionality of controller no between any number of processors,
including processors located on one or more elevator cars
110A-C.
[0023] In operation, then, the controller no receives data 131 from
elevator sensors 120 and uses the received data 131 to determine
the then-current spatial capacity that remains in the elevator car
104. This information, in turn, can be used to decide whether or
not the car 104 should respond to an elevator call. The
STOP/NO_STOP determination can be provided to the car 104 as a data
packet or other control signal 112 to the elevator's control
hardware, as appropriate. Other embodiments may augment or modify
this operation in any way. Controller no can make stoppage
decisions based upon any combination of available space, needed
space, numbers of requested stops and/or other factors as
appropriate. Further embodiments could use spatial capacity data to
coordinate the actions of two or more elevator cars in any manner.
Several alternative embodiments are described below.
[0024] FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of an example controller 110
that includes processing hardware 200 including a processor 201,
memory 202 and input/output interfaces 203 as appropriate.
Processor 201 is any sort of microprocessor, microcontroller,
digital signal processor or the like capable of executing program
instructions to implement the various functions described herein.
Program instructions and data may be stored in any sort of data
storage 202, which may be implemented using any type of static,
dynamic, flash or other memory, and/or with any sort of optical,
magnetic or other data storage, as appropriate. Data storage 202
could be equivalently or alternately implemented with any sort of
remote storage, such as any sort of file server or cloud storage
that may be available. Interfaces 203 may include electrical and/or
mechanical interfaces for transmitting and receiving data, or for
otherwise communicating with other devices as desired. Example
interfaces 203 could include any hardware for communicating with a
bus, network and/or other wired or wireless data conduit as
appropriate.
[0025] Controller device no is programmed or otherwise configured
to execute software, firmware or other logic to provide a control
system 210 for one or more elevator cars 104. In the example
illustrated in FIG. 2, control system 210 includes hardware or
software modules for processing sensor inputs (module 222), for
scheduling elevator car operations (module 224) and for generating
control signals 112 (module 226) as appropriate. In various
embodiments, each module 222, 224, 226 represents software or
firmware logic that can be stored (e.g., in memory 202) and
executed by processor 201. Particular algorithms and processes
executed by the various modules are set forth below, and other
embodiments could equivalently provide additional or alternate
modules executing other types of logic, as desired. Further, the
example modules and hardware implementations described herein could
be supplemented or modified in any way. Multiple processors could
cooperate to provide the various functions described herein, for
example, and/or the various functions described herein could be
organized into different modules in any number of equivalent
ways.
[0026] Inputs 131, 132 can be received from sensors 120, 122 (FIG.
1) in any manner. In various embodiments, module 222 or the like
receives digital data transmitted wirelessly and/or via a wired
connection via interfaces 203. The received data is formatted or
otherwise processed for subsequent analysis. The particular
formatting/processing that occurs varies depending upon the
embodiment and the types of data collected by the various sensors
120, 122, and several examples are provided herein. Camera-type
sensor 120, 122, for example, could provide digital imagery of any
resolution that shows a then-current picture of the measured space.
Equivalent embodiments could provide inputs from arrays of
infrared, weight, heat or other sensors 120, 122, as desired. Note
that captured data from sensors 120, 122 may be manipulated by the
sensors themselves and/or any intervening hardware so that the data
131, 132 received by controller 110 is the result of image
processing or other analysis of the raw data captured by sensors
120, 122. Alternatively, control device 110 could receive the raw
data captured by the sensors, thereby reducing the computational
power needed by the various sensor devices. Received data 131, 132
could be augmented with other factors (e.g., time of day, emergency
status, etc.) as described herein.
[0027] FIG. 3 shows on example image 300 of an elevator car 104
that could be received from a camera-type sensor 120, as desired.
In this example, the background 302 of the image 300 is a known
pattern corresponding to a floor, wall, ceiling or other portion of
the elevator car 104. A camera 120 could be mounted to provide a
top-down image 300, with the floor of the car 104 providing the
background 302. This background 302 may be controlled (or at least
known beforehand), for example by providing carpeting, tile, paint
or another floor covering having an appropriate appearance.
[0028] As people, freight or other objects fill the elevator car,
the top-down image 300 from camera 120 will indicate the relative
area of the background that is obscured, thereby providing a highly
accurate indication of the car's occupancy. If camera 120 can see
only a small percentage of the car's floor, for example, then the
car can be deduced to be relatively full. Conversely, if the camera
can see most or all of the car's floor, then the car can be deduced
to have available capacity for additional passengers or
objects.
[0029] Detection of objects can be performed according to any
appropriate algorithm or process. In various embodiments, image
recognition is performed by controller 110 as part of module 222
and/or module 224. Other embodiments could process the imagery
locally using a processor associated with camera 120 and/or
elevator car 104. Any image processing techniques could be used. In
one example, some or all of the pixels in the image are compared to
known values to detect and count those pixels that deviate from the
background value. "Values" could refer to pixel intensity,
luminosity, color or any other value. By counting the number of
pixels that do not correspond to the expected background 302, the
relative percentage of the car's occupancy can be computed. Other
embodiments may aggregate pixel values into one average, total or
other combined value that can be compared to an
empirically-determined threshold, without regard to the individual
pixel values. That is, some implementations may not care about the
specific pixels of the background that is obscured as much as the
total area that is obscured. If a background 302 were configured to
be entirely the maximum brightness, for example, the sum of the
pixel intensities would be reduced for each pixel that obscures the
background. Tracking the sum (or average) of the intensities, then,
may be easier than tracking the values for each of the various
pixels. Similar embodiments could track average or total variation
from a known background color. Other embodiments could use
statistical or other sampling techniques to evaluate only a subset
of the pixels, and/or any number of other image processing
techniques could be equivalently used to determine the occupied
area of the elevator car 104.
[0030] Alternative embodiments could use grids, points or other
arrays of sensors 120, as desired. FIG. 4, for example, shows an
array 400 of sensor 402 that could be used to sense the occupied
area of the elevator car 104. In various embodiments, sensors 402
could each be weight or other actuation sensors that detect the
presence of downward force in a particular area. Rather than
detecting the total weight of the car's load, however, these weight
sensors collectively detect the occupied area/volume of the car by
detecting where objects are located. Once again, it may not be
necessary to know the specific locations of the objects if the
aggregate amount of available space can be known. To that end, it
may be useful in some embodiments to simply track the total number
of sensors 402 in grid 400 that are actuated, rather than focusing
on the specific sensors 402 or the total weight detected.
[0031] In still other embodiments, the occupied area of the
elevator car 104 can be detected using other types of sensors 402
arranged in a grid or other array 400. An array 400 of infrared,
laser and/or other radio frequency (RF) sensors, for example, could
optically detect what percentage of the array 400 is occupied by
detecting breaks in continuity, or the like. Similarly, temperature
or other sensors could detect which portions of array 400 are
occupied, as desired.
[0032] The concepts illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 could be
equivalently applied to lobbies, foyers or other areas where
passengers are waiting for an elevator to arrive. If the
currently-occupied area of a car 104 is known, this can be compared
to the space that would be occupied by waiting passengers to
determine whether or not the car should stop for the waiting
passengers. If the car 104 lacks capacity for the waiting load,
then the car 104 can save time by avoiding the stop entirely.
Further, the controller 110 could use this information to dispatch
other cars 104, to coordinate the actions of multiple cars 104
and/or for any other purpose.
[0033] FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of an example process 500 executed
by controller 110 or the like (e.g., as part of control system 210)
to process an elevator call. As illustrated in FIG. 5, process 500
suitably includes the broad functions of receiving a request to
stop the elevator 104 (function 502), receiving sensor data 131
and/or 132 (function 504), detecting the current spatial area of
the car 104 that is occupied (function 506), determining if excess
capacity is available (function 504) and, if so, stopping for
additional passengers (function 512). If no capacity is available,
then the car 104 bypasses the stop (function 514) and continues so
that current passengers are not unnecessarily delayed. Other
embodiments may supplement or modify the process 500 for additional
considerations (function 510) as desired.
[0034] Generally speaking, process 500 would be executed by
controller 110 or the like to determine whether or not the elevator
car 104 should stop at a requested floor. The request to stop at a
particular floor may be received in any manner (function 502).
Various embodiments could respond to a button press by a potential
passenger, for example, whereas other embodiments could initiate
process 500 in response to calls made by other cars 104 or other
elements of system 100.
[0035] As noted above, the then-current spatial occupancy (e.g.,
how much space is occupied) can be very helpful in deciding whether
or not the elevator should respond to a particular request to stop.
If the elevator 104 is already full, then it would be a waste of
time to stop for additional passengers. To that end, cameras or
other sensors 120 provide sensor data 131 that is received by the
controller 110 (function 504). Data 131 may be received in any
manner (e.g., via any sort of wired or wireless data connection,
network, bus or the like), and in any format. As noted previously,
some embodiments may perform image processing or other
pre-processing by the sensor 120, 122 or another device within
system 100 so that the data 131, 132 received by the controller is
already partially processed, as desired.
[0036] The current occupancy of elevator car 104 may be detected in
any manner (function 506). As noted above, spatial occupancy may be
measured through processing of pixels or other imagery obtained
from a camera, through processing of grid or other array sensor
data, and/or in any other manner. As noted above, camera imagery
may processed to count the number of people present in the elevator
104 (e.g., for compliance with fire or occupancy codes) and/or to
simply determine the area of the elevator car that is occupied by
recognizing deviations in pixel values. Spatial occupancy may also
consider baggage, boxes, packages or other objects that are present
in the elevator, since these objects can occupy substantial areas
of the elevator, thereby precluding additional occupants. As noted
above, spatial occupancy can often provide a more realistic measure
of elevator capacity than weight, especially when the elevator is
transporting people or objects that are relatively large, yet not
heavy.
[0037] Available capacity in the elevator may be determined in any
manner (function 508). The occupancy values based upon sensor data
may be compared to previously-determined threshold values, for
example, using simple numerical comparisons. If only half of the
pixels in an image contain known background imagery, for example,
then it can be known that half of the elevator's area is occupied
by people or objects. Again, it may not be necessary to know which
portions of the elevator 104 are occupied if it is known what
percentage or how much of the elevator area remains available. In
the example of FIG. 5, function 508 identifies whether the elevator
car 104 is full or not. "Full" in this sense simply refers to the
lack of excess space to accommodate additional passengers or
objects. If more than a threshold amount (e.g., 75% or so) of the
car's floor space is obscured, for example, then some embodiments
may conclude that the car is "full" even though some excess space
is present. "Full" in this context, then, does not require 100% of
the elevator's capacity; the particular threshold amount indicting
"fullness" can vary from embodiment to embodiment depending upon
desired comfort space, elevator utilization, and any other factors
as desired. Further embodiments may allow elevator operators to
configure the "fullness" parameter to their individual tastes,
and/or "fullness" may be adapted during the course of the day
(e.g., so that a "full" elevator provides additional comfort space
during periods of reduced demand). The particular threshold values
may be determined according to any technique, including trial and
error, and may vary widely from implementation to implementation.
Other embodiments may be adapted as desired.
[0038] If the car is full, then there is typically no need to stop
for additional passengers (function 514). If space remains, then
the car can stop to accommodate the additional passengers who are
waiting (function 512). In either case, controller no directs the
elevator car 104 to stop or continue by generating and providing
control signals 112 or the like to the elevator motors or other
controls, as described herein. Control signals 112 may be simple
electrical signals in some implementations, or may be more complex
data packets formatted in any manner for distribution via a bus,
network or other data transmission as desired.
[0039] Note that the general parameters and routines described
herein may be modified or overridden as needed. If a current
passenger on the elevator car wishes to stop at a floor that would
otherwise be bypassed, for example, then a "required stop"
(function 510) can nevertheless be scheduled at that floor.
Required stops 510 could also occur during fires or other
emergencies when safety would dictate that passengers should
disembark at the earliest opportunity. If system 100 detects that
passengers are present in the elevator car 104 when an emergency
alarm triggers, for example, function 510 or the like could stop
the car 104 at the next safe floor to drop passengers off, as
desired. Alternatively, stopping could be overridden to prevent
passengers from entering the elevator car 104 during unsafe
conditions or the like.
[0040] Controller no may consider additional factors as appropriate
in scheduling stops (functions 508, 510). Controller no may
consider the time of day, for example, in allocating space and/or
in prioritizing stops. An elevator system 100 may prioritize upward
passenger delivery during morning hours (as passengers arrive at
work) over downward delivery. Prioritization could be reversed
during afternoon/evening hours to accommodate departing passengers,
as desired. Other embodiments could consider seasonal variations
(e.g., holiday crowds at retail stores), holidays (e.g., to
accommodate increased shopper traffic and/or reduced employee
traffic on weekends or holidays), weather or traffic conditions
and/or other factors, as appropriate.
[0041] Note that process 500 could be supplemented, as desired, to
coordinate the actions of multiple elevator cars 104A-C. If one car
104A is full, for example, then another car 104B can be dispatched
to handle the waiting passengers while car 104A proceeds directly
to let off one or more passengers before making extra stops.
Similarly, an "upper level" car 104C could be delayed until a
"lower level" car 104B arrives, if desired. Further, the "lower
level" car 104B could be directed to skip stops (even if capacity
exists for additional passengers) if it allows the car 104B to
arrive before car 104C departs, thereby allowing passengers in car
104B to catch the other car 104C without inordinately delaying the
other car 104C. The ability to forego stops when the elevator is
spatially full can substantially improve the efficiency of
operating one elevator or any number of elevators, as
appropriate.
[0042] FIG. 6 shows a further process 600 that could be executed by
controller 110 (e.g., as part of module 224) as desired. In this
example, the controller no also receives data 132 from sensors 122
in one or more waiting areas so that the current spatial occupation
of the elevator car 104 can be compared to the expected spatial
load of the waiting passengers.
[0043] To that end, controller 110 suitably detects the current
capacity of the car (function 602) in a manner similar to that
described with functions 502-506 above (e.g., based upon data from
camera or array sensors as desired). Additionally, controller 110
receives additional data 132 from sensors 122 (function 603) to
detect the expected area (or volume) to be consumed by waiting
passengers. If the expected space is greater than the available
space in the car 104 (function 604), then the car 104 can be
directed to stop for the waiting passengers. If the car 104 does
not expect to have enough space for the waiting passengers, then
the stop can be bypassed (function 608) for at least the time
being. FIG. 6 therefore shows one process 600 that can consider
both measured spatial occupancy and measured spatial demand to
determine whether the elevator car 104 should stop, or whether the
stop would simply serve to delay the current passengers in the car
104 without aiding the passengers who are waiting.
[0044] The general concepts set forth in the drawing figures may be
supplemented or modified in any number of ways. Function 607, for
example, indicates that the decision to stop or bypass waiting
passengers may be augmented with other constraints or factors, as
desired. If passengers have been waiting for a considerable time
(e.g., on the order of several minutes), for example, then the car
104 may be encouraged to stop, even if insufficient capacity is
available. This might encourage current passengers to move together
more tightly to accommodate the waiting passengers, or it may allow
a few of the waiting passengers to proceed even if the entire party
is not able to ride on the same elevator 104. This recognizes that
passenger groups may be willing to split up, especially when they
have been waiting for an amount of time. Additional factors such as
emergency conditions, time of day, seasonal factors and/or the like
could be additionally or alternately considered, as appropriate.
Several of these considerations were mentioned in connection with
function 510 above.
[0045] As noted above, further embodiments could also consider the
actions of other elevator cars 104 in deciding whether or not to
stop for additional passengers. If a car 104 knows that another car
is relatively empty (or at least has excess capacity), then the
first car may skip one or more stops even though capacity for the
additional passengers may be available. This would expedite the
trip for the current passengers without unduly delaying the waiting
passengers.
[0046] Further, if the elevator 104 knows that an event is about to
occur, then the elevator may make extra effort to arrive prior to
the event, even if excess capacity is available. If a top floor
meeting, tour or other event is beginning shortly, for example, the
car 104 may not stop at intervening floors to ensure that current
passengers are not late for the event. Other events that could be
scheduled include other elevators departing for higher (or lower)
floors in a multi-stage elevator system, or any other events as
desired. As noted above, if an elevator 104C for the upper floors
of a building 102 is scheduled to depart soon, then system 100 may
reduce the number of stops made by elevators 104B ascending from
lower floors so that passengers on arriving elevator 104B can
connect to departing elevator 104B without additional delay. (Of
course similar constructs could also be used with descending
elevators, particular during times of day that more people are
leaving the building 102 than entering it.) Conversely, if the
connecting elevator is not scheduled to depart for some time, then
additional stops can be scheduled, as desired. In still other
embodiments, controller 110 can pause or hold the departing
elevator until other elevators arrive, as desired.
[0047] Further embodiments could adapt decisions to hold or release
the elevator based upon the measured spatial capacity of the
departing elevator, as well as the then-current occupancy of the
arriving elevator. If a departing elevator is full, for example,
then there is no need for it to wait until additional passengers
arrive. Conversely, if a connecting elevator has enough space
remaining to receive additional passengers, then it may be most
efficient to hold the departing elevator until additional
passengers arrive. The measured spatial capacity of the elevator
can be used in any number of additional or alternate ways to
efficiently schedule and operate any number of elevators, as
desired.
[0048] It will therefore be appreciated that spatial evaluation of
elevator occupancy has several marked advantages over weight-based
monitoring. If no space is available in the elevator, then there is
no need for the elevator to stop for additional passengers until
the current spatial utilization is reduced. Although the spatial
occupancy is largely discussed herein in terms of humans occupying
the car, in practice equivalent concepts could be applied to
freight, baggage or other packages, hospital or industrial
equipment, factory equipment or inventory, and/or any other objects
as desired.
[0049] The various processes, devices and systems described herein
may be readily adapted for any number of equivalent environments
and applications. The term "exemplary" is used herein to represent
one example, instance or illustration that may have any number of
equivalent alternatives. Any implementation described herein as
"exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or
advantageous over other implementations, but rather as a mere
example. While several example embodiments have been presented in
the foregoing detailed description, it should be appreciated that a
vast number of alternate but equivalent variations exist, and the
examples presented herein are not intended to limit the scope,
applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. To the
contrary, various changes may be made in the function and
arrangement of elements described without departing from the scope
of the claims and their legal equivalents.
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